Tales Of The Stars
by gurugu
Summary: Spoilers for everything. A series of drabbles, one offs, and musings of characters and experiences throughout the Star Wars Universe.
1. Luke's Passing

As Luke faded into the Force he felt peace for the first time in years.

The twins suns of Tatooine were there to guide him home, suns he hadn't seen in ages. The Force seemed to be doing a funny thing of taking him back to things he hadn't seen in years as he looked down at his hands to see young skin. He ran his suddenly nimble fingers over his face and felt the lack of facial hair. A roll of his shoulders told him that his old bones were new again, not an ache of age to be felt.

" _Luke?"_

A voice he hadn't heard in years spoke his name and he turned to see them, Owen and Beru. Beru was the one who had said his name, the woman who had pushed his uncle into taking Luke in and raising him as their own. The woman who made blue-milk cheese so good that he still found himself craving it. The woman who had sung him lullabies at night when he couldn't sleep and told him tales of his parents if he begged just a little.

Without a word he stepped to them, folding himself into Beru's arms and feeling like an 8 year old who'd woken from a nightmare.

" _It's over now. You've done so well."_

"I'm so-"

His apology was cut off by Owen who shook his head and shushed him. Their eyes met and Luke knew that he didn't have to say anything, they already knew. They knew about the guilt and the grief that had haunted him for years over their death. How sometimes at night he dreamt about how he couldn't save them, or how he could've saved them if he was just _there._

But as Beru slowly let go of Luke he was overcome with the feeling that they wouldn't have changed anything. They wouldn't have refused Ben Kenobi when he showed up with Luke as a baby merely a few days old. They wouldn't take back a day of raising him in the 19 years they had together. How could they take any of that back when they were so _proud_ of him?

Luke stepped back and looked over his aunt and uncle, glad to see them once again. They looked exactly as he remembered. As Owen nodded his head, a proud look in his eyes, and Beru smiled, proud tears filling her eyes, they faded back into the Force and Luke was alone again.

But not for long.

A voice he didn't know met his ears, one filled with warmth and knowledge.

" _You must be the young Skywalker."_

The voice belonged to a man, a Jedi assumed Luke by his attire, who had long brown hair and deep brown eyes that matched his voice. There was a more than familiar chuckle and they both turned to see the 900 year old Jedi join them.

" _Young as you, he is not, Qui-Gon."_

Luke looked down at his hands again to see that he was old, reverted back to the age he had been when he had passed into the depths of the Force.

' _Masters!"_

The three Jedi looked to see someone else joining them. Upon first glance, Luke did not recognize the newcomer. He was happy; face covered by a beard tinged with red and similar to the one Luke was sporting, jedi robes flapping behind him as he ran towards them. It was the eyes that gave away who he was.

"Ben?"

There was a moment where Ben frowned, looking over the unfamiliar old man in front of him, not knowing the robed individual whose soul was heavy with regret and sadness but had a glint of hope shimmering through that only grew when Ben smiled in recognition.

" _Luke, you made it. Come, there's some people you should meet."_

He reached out and took Luke's hand, the contact reverting him back to his young, teenage self. The self that had seen Ben Kenobi be struck down, the self that had gone from not caring about the odd hermit who'd been in the desert as long as Luke could remember, to wanting to drink in every word and action the man had to offer. Vague memories of the words " _Run, Luke! Run!"_ came drifting through and for a brief second Luke was transported back to being a young boy, to a memory he had long forgotten where Ben had saved his life and in return had been smacked down by Owen.

As Ben led him somewhere (through what Luke isn't too sure, the place he is now doesn't seem to have a physical form. There are no buildings, no plants, no ground. But it seems as solid as the world he had left behind), Luke revisits the memory of the last time he had seen Ben Kenobi. " _Run, Luke! Run!"_ It was a moment he used to dream about, screaming Ben's name into the dead of night and waking up in a sweat to be comforted by a force he could never see.

It occurs to him now that that force was Ben. He was always by Luke's side, gently guiding him every step of the way. He had been there almost to the very end, only gone when Luke had cut off his connection to the Force.

A tug on his hand made him come out of his memories and he looked to see that Ben had stopped the two of them. Luke looked to see a man he'd seen once on the moon of Endor, shimmering into the night with a thankful smile.

" _Luke, this is Anakin."_

" _We've met before Obi-Wan, you don't need to introduce my own son to me."_

Luke could practically feel the rolling of the eyes performed by the man next to him. Anakin gave a grin that earned a scoff from Ben but sparked a wave of fond emotions between the two. As Ben stepped back, Anakin stepped forward. He reached out and placed his hands on Luke's shoulders, looking him over with keen eyes.

" _Did you live a happy life? How's Leia? That, that man she married- Did he treat her right? What about you?"_

" _Ani. Stop harassing him."_

A woman Luke had only ever dreamed of came up behind Anakin, her hand resting on his shoulder and pulling him back to give Luke some space. She looked exactly as Luke had imagined, radiating grace and kindness. Leia had shown him pictures of her once. They had sat down and compared how they had grown up. Both had grown in families full of love, but Leia had been allowed to know their mother. She had image after image of the wondrous woman who had birthed them. Enough that Luke could create in his mind a version of her but nothing was better than the real thing.

He stared at Padmé and didn't know what to say, where to start. All he could think to do was hug her and never let go. So he did that. He collapsed into the arms of his mother, heart soaring when he felt her lips pressed to his forehead and her fingers threading through his hair.

" _It's okay. You can let go now. I'm here."_


	2. Twin Suns

_Set in Star Wars Rebels, Season 3 Episode 9 - Twin Suns._ _A glimpse into Ezra's despair in the desert._

Ezra had never felt more alone.

Clutching to the lifeless droid beside him, feeling the intense heat of Tatooine's two suns beating down on him.

The heat was all around; reflecting off the ground, heavy in the air. It was the reason for his dry throat and cracked lips, the cause of the dull throb between his eyes.

The heat was even coming from Chopper, it's metal hot but still a sense of comfort for the young Jedi.

 _I have failed._

The sand was everywhere; sinking where his knees were pressed in, somehow in every crack and crevice. After Lothal, Ezra thought he was used to the sand. But the sand in Tatooine was different. It coated every inch of him, a thin layer of it on his tongue so it was all he tasted too.

Sand covered Chopper too, probably in every crevice of the droid's machinery. For a moment Ezra's mind thought about how Chopper would be complaining about the presence of sand for an age.

Kanan would let out a humph, Zeb would chuckle and make some dig at the boy and his droid, Hera would roll her eyes, and Sabine…

Ezra's thoughts stopped when they got to Sabine. He couldn't cope with that loss today.

 _I should never have left._

Ezra took in a shaky breath, sand filling his lungs. He coughed for a few seconds and hoped that it would clear his lungs of the tiny grains. All he could think was that water would help him. A few drops and maybe he'd be okay. Maybe he'd survive. Maybe this would all be worth it.

 _I'm so sorry._

His thoughts went to Obi-Wan, the enigma of a man and his final broadcast to the Jedi playing through his mind. He had thought of the Jedi often, wondering what he was like. He had heard occasional stories from Rex and Ahsoka. They were tales of The Clones Wars. Told with eyes glimmering with nostalgic sadness as their words retold never-forgotten memories.

Master Obi-Wan Kenobi sounded like a great Jedi, and a part of Ezra had hoped that maybe he'd be alive. Ezra could've learned from him. Obi-Wan and Kanan could've passed on their collective knowledge to him.

Ezra could've told Obi-Wan about Ahsoka and how proud she would have made him.

 _I don't know what to do._

The heat was a series of -ings. It was blinding, making him unable to see anything around him. It was constricting, forcing him to stay crouched. It was sweltering, taking everything from him.

How people lived on the twin sun planet, he had no clue. He didn't envy those of Tatooine. He already thought it was a backwater planet and the suns were not changing his opinions anytime soon.

He knew he had to move soon. Somehow escape the suns and bring him and Chopper to a place of safety. But there was nothing in him to stir him to move.

Not until he heard the voice.

 _He is dead._

Maul's taunting met his ears. It gave Ezra something to fight for.

"No."

Despite the sand in his lungs, the young Jedi was able to force out the protest.

 _You led me to him._

Maul continued and Ezra shook his head.

"No!"

The outcry gave him the strength to force his eyes open and look up to see Maul standing there. He had drawn his lightsaber, the red throbbing in the same way the heights from the sun did.

 _You failed your friends._

Ezra drew his lightsaber in response, the green rising to meet the red.

"No! You will die! No!"

He leapt forward to try cut Maul down. What he was met with was a taunting laugh from the old Sith. When Ezra striked, Maul disappeared.

He fell to the ground, it hitting him upon impact that the heat created illusions. Maul was an illusion.

And so were the bright blue eyes gazing at him from under a hood.


	3. Hero, Right?

Poe Dameron was a hero, right?

At least that's what everybody told him.

He certainly didn't feel like a hero at that very moment. Hidden away in a room turned training area, the Resistance pilot was taking out some of his frustrations on a punching bag.

It was the middle of the night so there wasn't anyone around. Everyone on the base was either asleep, pulling the graveyard shift, or not on base. The members of Poe's squadron were probably all asleep.

At least Poe hoped they were. After the day they had had, they deserved a good night's rest.

A low whistle came from BB-8, the sound making Poe let out a deep sigh.

"I know buddy, I know I should be sleeping."

He let his arms fall to his side as another whistle left his astromech.

"Why aren't I? Well, I got too much on my mind… Boxing was supposed to help."

Poe moved across the small room. He picked up his bottle of water and sat down on the mats, a sad smile coming onto his lips as BB-8 rolled closer with a couple of beeps.

"I miss him too."

He took a long drink before speaking again.

"Iolo's with the stars now… But that's not really what I'm thinking about bud."

An inquisitive whistle left the droid and Poe let out a humph.

"You really wanna know?"

He watched as BB-8 rolled back and forth, almost looking like they were nodding.

"I'm thinking about a lot of things. Like what if we don't find Lor San Tekka? What if Luke Skywalker is dead? What if the Resistance loses?"

An annoyed series of beeps left BB-8 and Poe couldn't help his smile. The droid was right, it didn't do well to dwell on the what ifs. He was still there, he was still fighting, that was all that mattered.

"You know, I think you might be the smartest one of us all."

A smug tune left BB-8, something about BB-8 definitely being smarter than Poe -- they were programmed that way. Poe reached out and patted the side of his astromech. The hero didn't say anything else, the pat being enough thanks for his sidekick. He let his hand drop and after a few moments, Poe released a heavy sigh and got to his feet.

"Better get some sleep," He muttered.

BB-8 let out an approving beep and the smile on Poe's lips didn't come easy. His steps weren't easy either, feet feeling like lead as he left the training room and headed to his room.


	4. A Scavenger’s Hero

One of the hardest things Rey had to do since BB-8 came into her life was tell Luke Skywalker that Han Solo was dead.

It was definitely comparable to facing Kylo Ren or leaving Finn with the Resistance.

Finn... It's okay. BB-8 will take care of him.

A sad Wookie was a new experience for Rey. It was another one to add to the list that was ever expanding since a few days ago. As Luke consolidated Chewbacca, patting the Wookie's arm and nodding his head along to whatever he was saying, Rey took the chance to look over the infamous Jedi Master.

Before, when standing on the top of the cliff, Rey had thought he looked mystical... The hood pulled over his aging face gave off an air of mystery, his bright blue eyes shone with wisdom.

But that had all shattered when he took his lightsaber and tossed it behind him. Rey had actually heard shattering in her head when that happened, like someone had dropped a glass in a bar, it had hit the floor and sent silence across the room at the sound of it breaking.

Looking Luke over now gave her an entirely different opinion of the man. The hood that had made him look mysterious? Well, that was tattered and old and barely covering his face. The grey in his unkempt hair and beard, grey that looked regal on Leia, made Luke look years beyond his actual age. And those bright blue eyes? Well, those just looked sad.

Thinking back, Rey realized that they had looked sad the first time she met him. Now, with the news of Han's death, he looked even sadder... Almost like the news had skimmed years off his life.

Han's death had done that to Rey too. Seeing the man who promised her the stars, taken away by a cruel figure, had made Rey realize she needed to grow up quite quickly. No longer was she a scavenger on Jakku.

No, now she was...

A Jedi?

No. That didn't feel right.

Rey shook her head and concentrated back on the grieving heroes in front of her. Because they were heroes weren't they? Luke Skywalker. The man, the myth, the legend. The stories she had heard about him around the cleaning tables on Jakku or from the drunks at the outpost. When she was younger and folks were kinder, they'd tell her stories of the fall of the Empire. They would spin tales of the Jedi and eventually she would hear about him... Luke Skywalker.

Of course Han Solo came into those stories as well. You don't get to Jakku and not hear about Han Solo, the smuggler who had conquered the Kessel Run in 12 parsecs. Occasionally, she would get to hear stories about the Battle of Jakku too.

Find out the reasons for the ships she and others scavenged to get through each day. Discover why there was an AT-AT in the middle of a desert, the one she had made her home and found herself missing just last night...

But all that was behind her now. Now it was her, an upset Wookie, and a legend she never thought to be true.


End file.
